To all fellow Lions, friends, and citizens of Conroe, I hope you find comfort, peace, and quiet activities to fill your days as we navigate through challenging times.

During challenging times, we must rise above and find the good. Life in the fast lane suddenly slows down as we take time to appreciate life and catch our breath. Lions are not able to connect at our weekly meeting or fulfill service projects, but our leadership remains undaunted. Last week, they rolled out the first ever Conroe Noon Lions Club No Show Luncheon, on Facebook Live! The meetings remain archived for all to view and enjoy, and we hope you make plans to join us again this Wednesday at our next “no-show” meeting.

Today I would like to shine a light on our state’s most beloved Lions Club resource, The Texas Lions Camp in Kerrville. If you are not familiar, I’ll give you some background and hopefully warm your heart. For those who know the camp or know campers hoping to attend, registration is proceeding as planned. Administrators are monitoring the situation closely and will provide open communication regarding decisions made to ensure the safety of all campers and staff.

The Texas Lions Camp (TLC) officially opened in 1953 with 40 kids in attendance.It has evolved over the last 77 years and now serves over 1500 campers each summer. 2020 includes 5 weekly sessions for children with disabilities, 1 session for children with type 1 diabetes, and 1 session for children with Down syndrome. TLC partners with other organizations to provide sessions for children with epilepsy, cancer, and burn survivors. All of this is provided at no cost to the camper. 100% of the expenses are sponsored by Lions clubs.

What makes the Texas Lions camp so special? My fellow Lions who’ve attended a graduation ceremony know. The parent of the camper who lives a life of limitation know. TLC is about exploring, learning, and living beyond a life of limitations. “At Texas Lions Camp, we view camp as a time for campers to explore, exercise curiosity, and discover new interests and abilities. We want campers to attempt things that would normally be out of their reach, such as riding a horse, or rock climbing on our ropes course, or just being part of a team.”

One of the biggest concerns of any parent, especially of a child with a disability or illness, is trusting their child will be safe. This is a challenge when recruiting campers. Parents hesitate to leave their child for a week. Fortunately, the rewards are life changing. For one week, TLC campers get to be around other kids like them. For one week it is all about what they CAN do. They get to just be a kid at summer camp. Not a kid in a wheelchair. Not a kid who is blind or deaf. Not a kid who has to worry about checking their blood sugar. That is what is special about TLC. If you have never witnessed that firsthand you are missing out.

CNLC has a special place in our heart for Texas Lions Camp. We were in the first group of clubs to commit financially to the camp in 1949 and we continue to contribute at 100% or more every year. Our members serve on the board and the executive committee of the camp, and many members support the camp financially as Century Club participants. We hope to make a trip to Kerrville to assist with camp projects and we also plan to attend a graduation ceremony in June. There are many ways to get involved and we are always looking to sponsor campers. For more information about how to apply visit www.texaslionscamp.com or call the Club office at 936-760-1666.